


Thud

by Tashi_Lupin



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Brotherhood, Gen, Light Angst, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Self-Harm, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-03
Updated: 2017-02-03
Packaged: 2018-09-21 19:06:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9562487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tashi_Lupin/pseuds/Tashi_Lupin
Summary: "Todd is doing it again," Damian scowled and pushed a piece of potato around his plate with his fork. Dick knows it could be many things, especially with Jason, but he had a feeling whatever it was it had to do with the dullthud thud thudcoming from upstairs.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Also posted on tumblr at  
> http://thrakaboom.tumblr.com/post/156760373582/thud
> 
> Reviews are very much apperciated! <3

"Todd is doing it again," Damian scowled and pushed a piece of potato around his plate with his fork. Dick knows it could be many things, especially with Jason, but he had a feeling whatever it was it had to do with the dull _thud thud thud_ coming from upstairs. 

Dick stood, ruffling Damian's hair as he headed up, knowing the noise wasn't going to let up and he should see what trouble Jason was getting into. "Finish your dinner."

"I shall do no such thing!" Damian called after him, but Dick was already halfway up the stairs.

The noise was coming from Jason's old bedroom and only paused when Dick knocked.

"Go away!" Jason called through the door and _thud thud thud_ started up again, slightly faster. Like hell Dick was going to leave Jason alone now. The lock on the door was easy to pick and it didn't seem like Jason used his old bedroom enough to change the locks into something that would satisfy the paranoia that Dick knew had says brought him.

Bruce had keep Jason's bedroom untouched and shrine-like after his death and Jason hadn't bothered to change it since coming back. He stayed at the Manor so rarely, anyways. It was left an untouched monument to the fifteen year old who had been lost.

Except it wasn't untouched anymore.

Jason sat cross legged at the headboard of his old bed, seeming massive against the pale blue sheets. He had grown a lot since he had been fifteen, after all. He looked out of place.

Jason was slamming his forehead against the wall, just shy of being hard and fast enough of making himself pass out. His whole upper body was rocking with the hits. The _thudthudthudthud_ echoed in the room. He was going faster now than when Dick had heard him downstairs, and harder than he had seen Jason do this before. 

"Jason..." Dick trailed off, knowing that Jason would just get violent with him if he physically made him stop. "Jace, we've talked about this."

"I. Told. You. To. Go. Away." Jason spoke through gritted teeth, emphasizing each word with a hard hit against the wall, throwing his whole body into it.

"Thought we made a deal, Lil’ Wing," Dick moved to sit behind Jason, but didn't touch him. He'd done this enough to know that touching Jason would just make him spitting mad, unless Jason instigated the touch.

Jason paused in the banging and pointedly looked away from Dick. "Its not the same with the hood on," Jason said, referring to his Red Hood helmet. That was the deal the two of them had made a while ago.

Dick could understand it not being the same. He could understand it more than he would like to admit. 

“Damian is being a brat again,” Dick said, pulling at strings for a safe topic. He knew, well he hoped, that getting Jason distracted might get him to stop. God, he hoped it worked. Sometimes it did, sometimes it didn’t. Dick hated seeing Jason hurt himself; this wasn’t like when Jason would claw at his scars and Dick could sit on his chest and hold his hands to stop him. The head banging seemed to be more personal and warranted a much more violent response to being physically stopped. Dick twitched his nose at the memory of Jason headbutting him so hard he broke it.

Jason’s banging did not relent, but it was softer now, putting less of his full force into it. Less likely to add to the bruise forming on his forehead. Small improvements. “Kid’s always a brat.”

Dick shrugged despite Jason facing away from him because he knew it was true. Couldn't help loving the kid, though, and he knew Jason couldn’t help it either. “Yeah, but this time he's actually being a brat about a kid thing.”

Jason paused before going back at it at a slower pace, like he was calmed down by the casual presence of his brother and normal conversation. “No shit?”

“No shit. He's being difficult about food just because he wants to be difficult.”

Jason snorted and smiled and Dick could have sworn he heard him say “That’s my boy.”

Dick leaned back on his hands. “He’s downstairs at the table right now.”

Jason was resting his head on the wall now, not banging, just resting. Occasionally shaking his head. There was the beginnings of a bruise forming. His eyes were closed and his chest rose and fell in a soft constant. “He’s probably down in the cave by now,” Jason said.

“Probably.” Dick agreed. "He got in trouble at school again too, for fighting, but I can't even pretend to be upset with him 'cause he was defending another student from a bully and we all would have done the same." He laughed a little. "Probably would have hurt the other kid worse than he did in the end, actually. Dami's a good kid, when he wants to be."

Dick chewed his lower lip. “Wanna talk about it, Jace?” They both knew he wasn't talking about Damian.

“No.”

“If you change your mind-”

"I won’t.”

"- I’m here.”

“Whatever.”

“I’m gonna hug you now, okay?” Dick said, waiting for Jason to give him permission for the contact.

"Whatever.”

It was as good of permission he was gonna get so Dick wrapped his arms around his little brother’s waist- god, when did he get so _big?_ \- and rested his head on his back. Jason didn't move so he could hug him back, but he didn’t push him off either. He just let him give him the affection.

“You’re the worst.”

“I thought Bruce was the worst,” Dick said into Jason’s shirt.

“Second worst.” The words held a fondness.

“You love me,” Dick teased.

“Whatever.” Maybe it was true. Maybe it wasn’t. 

"You gonna stop doing this?” Dick asked more seriously. “Or at least do it with your helmet on?”

They both knew the answer wasn’t gonna be what Dick wanted to hear. Jason didn’t respond.


End file.
